- EverVigilant.net -"The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt." - John Philpot Curran

The National Rifle Association of America, Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA), is praising the enactment of Georgia House Bill 89. Governor Sonny Perdue (R) signed the bill into law yesterday.

Among its provisions is one that allows "concealed carry permit holders to carry in restaurants." That should make constitutionalists like me happy, right? Wrong.

Now, if I were a restaurant owner, I would have absolutely no problem welcoming customers who happened to be carrying a weapon. In fact, I would feel much safer. The chances of me being robbed would drop dramatically.

But not everyone feels the way I do about a well-armed citizenry. Some people feel squeamish about guns and just don't want them around. Why shouldn't they have the right to ban them from their own property?

Sure, this law will have all the gun advocates cheering, but it is at the expense of property ownership. The irony is that the right to keep and bear arms used to be thought of as necessary for the protection of private property rights. Go figure.